Picked 14th in the Atlantic Coast Conference preseason poll, first-place Virginia faces a clear path to the conference championship game as the only remaining unbeaten team in ACC play.Ranked 14th in the first College Football Playoff poll released Tuesday, the Cavaliers (8-1, 5-0) will play two of their last three games in Charlottesville, Va., starting Saturday night against Wake Forest (5-3, 2-3).After hosting the Demon Deacons, the Cavaliers will visit Duke on Nov. 15 before returning from a bye to welcome rival Virginia Tech on Nov. 29. Those three Virginia opponents are a combined 0-6 this season against teams in the AP Top 25.This is the highest CFP ranking ever for Virginia. The Cavaliers were 25th in the initial rankings in 2018 and returned for the final two rankings in 2019 at Nos. 23 and 24.Virginia has won seven consecutive games — three in overtime — since its only blemish, a four-point loss at North Carolina State in a non-conference contest on Sept. 6.The 8-1 start is the Cavaliers’ best in 35 years, and it’s the first time they’ve ever been 5-0 in the ACC. Defeating Wake Forest would mark their first eight-game winning streak in a single season; they won 10 straight across 1914-15 and 1951-52.Virginia coach Tony Elliott said he told his players to focus on football and “simplify your life.””I’ve tried to tell them that a lot more people are going to come out of the woodwork,” Elliott said Tuesday. “You’re going to get a lot more messages after every game. A lot more people are going to want to be a part of what’s going on, and unfortunately, that becomes a distraction.”The Demon Deacons are coming off their worst loss under first-year coach Jake Dickert, falling 42-7 last weekend at Florida State. They were outgained 421-247, were penalized 11 times for 93 yards, and committed two turnovers.